


Finding Royalty

by rottentidepod



Series: Mysteries of Red Dead Redemption [2]
Category: Red Dead Redemption (Video Games)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Mentions of Rape, Mentions of Underage Sex, Molly deserves better, Red Dead Redemption 2 Spoilers, also several characters dont die because i'm the author and i decide who lives and dies, so i gave her a gf
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-04
Updated: 2019-06-04
Packaged: 2020-04-07 17:29:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19089736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rottentidepod/pseuds/rottentidepod
Summary: Princess Isabeau Katharina Zinsmeister has been missing for more than 25 years and Sadie wants to find her. However, it seems as if multiple people from the Van Der Linde Gang knew her.[Major spoilers for RDR2, don't read if you haven't finished the full game yet]





	Finding Royalty

**Author's Note:**

> im too cool for editing

John Marston didn’t think much about his day when he woke up. Abigail was sleeping next to him, turned towards him. He suspected Jack was still sleeping too. He heard Rufus barking outside and could only assume the dog was barking at the horses or the cows.

He stretched his arms, yawning, and moved to sit up on the bed. He glanced back towards Abigail and thought about waking her up before deciding against it.

At last, he got up from the bed and left the bedroom. He figured he could do some chores before heading towards Blackwater for food.

John knew that plan went out the window when he saw Sadie Adler ride up to the ranch.

“Mrs. Adler,” John waved and she smiled, “Marston!”

“Long time no see,” he crossed his arms playfully, “What brings you here?”

Sadie hitched her horse on one of the posts outside the house. “I’ve got a job for you, if you want.” She said, grinning.

John sighed, looking away. “You know I can’t, Sadie. Abigail-“

“I know what she said,” Sadie interrupted, “But what if I said there won’t be any shootin’ or killin’?”

“With you there’s always shooting.”

“I promise I’ll behave!”

“Fine,” he murmured, “What’s this about?”

“Have you heard of the missin’ princess of Luxembourg?”

“Can’t say I have.”

“Well, as you may have noticed, John, she’s a princess,” Sadie explained, “Went missing during a visit to the states when she was five. Now, I found a man who was told by a local to go to Van Horn for clues. But he didn’t find anything, so-“

“So you want me to go to Van Horn?”

“Yes,” the bounty hunter breathed out.

“I-I don’t know. Trying to find this girl will take ages, I don’t know if I can leave Abigail and Jack for so long,” John hesitated. “John, it won’t take that long! If you’re really worried, there’s a hotel in Van Horn where they can stay anyway!” Sadie desperately said.

John rolled his eyes as he thought about the hotel in Van Horn – if you could even call it a hotel. The mold growing on the walls, the terrible bed that would break your spine in multiple ways and the sketchy folk who wandered around in Van Horn weren’t things John wanted Abigail and Jack to see.

“As if,” John grunted, “You’ve been to Van Horn, haven’t you? I am not risking Abigail and Jacks safety by sending them to the worst hotel in the entire goddamn world. Besides, I got animals to care for.”

Sadie groaned, “John, I’m sure they can manage fine without you! Think about the price the royal family will pay us if we find their kid!”

John rubbed his forehead in annoyance and took a deep breath. “I still have tons of money left from Blackwater. Besides, who says she’s even still alive or willing to go back to bein’ a princess?”

“John,” Sadie begged, “It’s worth a look! And who wouldn’t want to go back to a royal life? Besides, you’re the only man who can help me right now.”

“You’re not giving up, are you?”

“Nope.”

“Fine, just… Just let me talk to Abigail. Not even sure if she’s awake yet.”

Before he even reached the front door, Abigail already walked out, still in her nightgown. Her arms were already crossed and John could only assume she was already suspicious.

“Abigail,” John greeted.

“Another bounty hunt?” Abigail immediately asked.

John’s eyes widened and he had to make sure he heard her right. “Uh- I… Actually, no. Not really. Just uh, finding some missing girl,” he tried to explain but Abigail didn’t seem fazed.

“Her family has been looking for her for… At least twenty years,” Sadie jumped in, “We can find this poor girl and reunite her with her family!”

Abigail stayed quiet for a moment, before she said: “No guns?”

“No guns!” Sadie promised. Abigail turned back to her husband and sighed, “Send me a letter when you arrive in Van Horn, a-and whenever you can, and when you’re about to leave, okay? I’ll have Jack or Uncle read it for me.”

“Of course, Abigail,” John nodded.

“I-I’ll help you pack some things and you can say goodbye to Jack,” she muttered.

John nodded, “Thanks…”

She walked back into the house and John briefly glanced back to Sadie, who was trying not to laugh.

“I uh… I should go inside,” John murmured before following Abigail inside.

He found her sitting on the bed they shared, trying not to sob. “Darlin’,” John breathed out, immediately sitting down next to her, “What’s wrong?”

“Everything, John!” she snapped, “I-I just can’t believe you’re leaving again! Why do you keep doing this?”

John looked down at his lap and thought about what she said. Finally, he confessed, “I… Suppose I miss the ‘good old days’, y’know? Back with the gang, going on crazy missions and hanging out with friends… You don’t just forget about that.”

“I… You’re right… It’s a part of you that I can’t change. I miss them too. Tilly, Mary-Beth, Karen… Even Molly, in a way…” Abigail replied, “I guess I’m only trying to forget about everything that happened because of how it ended.”

“And Im trying to remember the good times, Guess we’re copin’ in different ways…”

“I… Maybe… Maybe we can visit his grave… All of us? When you’re back?”

“I’ve visited everyone’s grave so far, even went into the mountains for Jenny and Davey… But Arthur…” John sighed.

“He’d be proud of the man you’ve become,” Abigail smiled, resting her head on his shoulder. John dryly chuckled, “Alright, alright… When I get back, we travel to Ambarino to visit his grave… And who’ll take care of the farm?”

Abigail huffed, raising her head again, “It’s time for Uncle to carry his weight around.”

“Maybe go look in Blackwater,” John chuckled, “Unless you want to hear him complain about his lumbago.”

“He already complains, it wouldn’t make a difference,” Abigail snickered.

“John,” she weakly said once her laughter died down, “Stay safe, okay?”

“Always.”

“Now go,” she pouted, “I bet Jack’s awake now.”

He pressed a kiss against her nose and got up from the bed. When he walked into the hallway, he saw Jack leaving his room.

“Jack,” John called out, almost automatically. His son looked up in surprise.

“I uh- can we talk?” John nervously asked and Jack nodded. John kneeled down in front of his son and sighed, “I uh… I’ll be gone for a while. But not too long, alright? I’ll be back before you know it!”

“Where are you going?”

“Ah uh, well, y’see, there’s this princess, and she’s missing. Aunt Sadie and I are going to find her,” John tried to explain, “Like in one of your stories!”

“Mhm, sure dad,” Jack muttered, walking away.

It was in that moment that he realized. Jack wasn’t the little four-year-old who’d show everyone a bug he found at camp anymore. Jack was a twelve-year-old boy now who wanted to live like a twelve-year-old.

Taking a deep breath, he got up. Sadie was waiting for him.

Abigail gave him his satchel before he mounted his horse. She, Jack and Rufus stood on the front porch as he and Sadie rode off, Abigail waving at him. He waved back, of course.

“Be careful,” John suddenly said as they left through the gates of the ranch, “There’s a cougar around here somewhere.”

“I’m sure we’ve killed worse before,” Sadie chuckled.

“Still, don’t want your horse to get spooked,” John laughed.

She dryly laughed before looking over to him, “So, we’ll be in Van Horn in about four hours, hope you have enough rations for the trip.”

“Well,” John sighed, “I don’t have old friends comin’ to my house every day, tellin’ me to go to Van Horn of all places, but yes, I’m sure I still have enough from my last trip to Blackwater.”

“Good,” Sadie nodded, “Hope you can sit on your saddle for that long.”

“Can you?”

**~ « • » ~**

“If we turn left here, we reach Valentine,” John said and Sadie smirked, “Are you trying to say something?”

“I’m just sayin’!” John defensively said, “You pull me out of my house at six am, without having breakfast!”

Sadie rolled her eyes, “Fine. A quick stop, but that’s it.”

Valentine was busy, as always. People were already drunk, despite it only being eight am.

“Good ol’ Valentine, where people are drunk before breakfast,” John grunted and Sadie snickered, “Oh please, they’ve been drunk since yesterday, they only just gathered the courage to go home to their wives.”

John snorted and hitched his horse in front of the saloon. Sadie hitched Hera next to his horse and followed him inside.

The saloon in Valentine hadn’t changed a bit. Everything was still the same and even the owner had stayed here to work.

Their visit to Valentine didn’t last long but it felt good to be off his saddle after riding for two hours.

Eventually, they had to continue to Van Horn.

Another two hours had passed, and they were definitely getting closer. He recognized the road from when he briefly travelled to Annesburg to visit a Charlotte Balfour, someone Arthur knew and had helped in the past.

The lighthouse of Van Horn came into view and John sighed in relief. He loved his horse, Rachel, but he’d be lying if he said his ass didn’t hurt from sitting on his horse all day.

“So, where do we go first?” John asked as they overlooked the small village.

“First,” Sadie said, “We find a poster we can use to ask around.”

The people of Van Horn paid them no mind as they rode through the street. John realized that Van Horn was worse than Valentine when it came to drunkards. He already wanted to leave as soon as possible.

“There’s a poster on the wall of the saloon, wanna check it out?” Sadie asked. John nodded, sighing deeply as they hitched heir horses nearby.

They walked to the Old Light Saloon, towards the poster of a missing person. However, three men, one of which was sitting on the rotten floorboards, were blocking their path by standing directly in front of the poster.

“Fellas,” Sadie coldly said, “Mind takin’ a step aside so we can have a look at that poster over there?”

The men chuckled, “Sorry, pretty lady, it’s gon’ be a lil’ harder to convince us.”

Sadie gritted her teeth and John could see the fiery look in her eyes. Before she could speak, however, John interrupted.

“Alright, time to move,” he ordered but once again the men laughed.

“I said,” John growled, banging his fist against the wall next to the men, “Move!”

“A’ight, calm down old man!” the man closest to his fist defensively said, raising his hairy hands to surrender. His friend got up, dusting the back of his brown pants as he glared at John.

They didn’t say anything, only gave the two of them mean glares as they walked off.

“Thank you,” Sadie muttered under her breath as they both watched the men walk away. She then ripped the poster off the wall and looked at it, “Princess Isabeau Katharina Zinsmeister…”

John looked at the price instead, “A hundred dollars? Really? You sure this is a royal family?”

“We can get more, if we negotiate,” Sadie smirked. “Actually negotiate or your way of negotiating?” John joked.

Sadie innocently smiled.

“So, where do we start?” John asked.

Sadie raised her arm, pointing to entrance of the saloon.

“Of course.”

He followed her into the saloon. She walked towards the bar where the proprietor was serving drinks and food.

He finished serving a customer and then turned to John and Sadie. “What’d’ya want?” he asked.

“Two whiskeys,” John sighed. Sadie nodded, “We also want to ask some questions.”

The man leaned against the bar and waited for Sadie to continue. She unfolded the poster and showed it to him, “Your saloon is the only place with this poster.”

The owner rubbed his bearded chin and nodded, “Hmm… Yes, I remember the day she went missin’. The only reason I still got the poster up is b’cause all the others were taken down by men who thought they could solve this mystery. After a while, people stopped tryin’ and gave up.”

He briefly walked away to serve their drinks. When he came back, John asked: “Wait, you were here when she went missin’?”

The man shook his head, “No, I only remember the day when lawmen walked around Van Horn, askin’ everyone if they’d seen the princess.”

John and Sadie sighed.

“Give up,” the man shrugged, “It’s been twenty-three years, you won’t find her.”

“We’re not giving up,” Sadie glared, downing her drink, “Let’s go, John.”

John was startled and quickly drank his whiskey, almost choking. He followed Sadie outside and asked, “What now?”

She took a deep breath and shrugged, “I don’t know yet.”

John rolled his eyes, “Great. We got nothin’!”

Sadie crossed her arms, “We got s’thin’!”

‘Psst.’

Sadie turned around to face a woman trying to get their attention. She wore an old, torn bordeaux red dress and her face was covered by a navy blue cap.

“C’mere,” she whispered. Glancing back to John, Sadie stepped forward and they both followed the stranger into an alleyway, leading to the backyard of the saloon.

“’Eard ye were askin’ ‘bout the princess,” the woman asked and the two nodded.

“Do you know anythin’ ‘bout her?” John asked and the woman nodded.

“Well, n’thin’ ‘bout ‘er, but if ye go to the fence behind the ‘otel, you’ll find ‘er toys ‘n belongin’s,”

Sadie and John looked at each other.

“The fence, you say?”

“Aye.”

“Thank you,” Sadie nodded her head.

“Ain’t a problem,” the woman brushed it off, “Ne’er trusted ‘im anyway.”

“Let’s go take a look, shall we?” Sadie smiled. John grinned, “With pleasure.”

They left the small alleyway and Sadie looked around. “Where do we find this hotel?”

“Follow me,” John muttered, already trudging through the muddy street towards the hotel.

“By the way, don’t sleep here,” he told her, “Last time I spent a night here, a rat tried to eat Arthur’s hat.”

Sadie cringed, “Well last time I was here, Pinkertons were- Nevermind.”

“Nah,” John frowned, “Tell me.”

“When they kidnapped Abigail.”

“So this is where she shot the asshole.”

“Yeah…”

“Good.”

They reached the fence. John looked through the window to see if anyone was inside and saw a man petting his dog. “Let’s go in,” Sadie murmured, already opening the door. John came behind as the dog immediately ran up to him.

“Hey boy,” he smiled and the owner greeted them, “Hello, if you need any assistance, don’t hesitate to ask!”

Sadie walked away to investigate as John kept petting the dog. For now, he took the opportunity to ask some questions.

“I saw that missing person poster outside the saloon,” he said, “Must be hard for the parents.”

The man nodded, “Yeah, I don’t know what I’d do if my little girl went missing for that long...”

“Do you know anything about what happened that day?”

He shook his head, “No. I mean, the family was in Saint Denis when she disappeared. Lawmen asked everyone in Lemoyne and New Hanover about her but I doubt they found anything.”

“John, look at this!” Sadie yelled from around the corner. The dog whined when John stood up and followed him when he walked over to Sadie, just like the owner of the fence.

Sadie was standing near a suitcase with dolls on top of it.

“I. K. Z,” the suitcase read.

John and Sadie shared a knowing look that the owner interrupted.

“Some man came in here, asking if he could sell it,” he explained, “Something about his daughter dying and not wanting to be reminded.”

Sadie nodded and opened the suitcase. It was filled with girl’s clothes, some bracelets, necklaces and so on. She closed the suitcase again and the man furrowed his eyebrows, “Looking for stuff for later?”

Sadie’s eyes widened, “Uh, no.”

He eyed John and Sadie, “It’s not the first time married couples come here.”

“We’re not-“ John and Sadie simultaneously said.

“We’re not married,” John explained, “I mean, I am, just not to her.”

“Ah, looking for your wife, then?”

“No, not yet.”

Sadie looked at John, surprised, but he dodged her gaze. “Anyway, we should go.”

“We should.”

As soon as they left the fence, she lightly pushed him, “Is Abigail pregnant?”

“No!” John said, his eyes wide, “Not yet!”

“Is little Jack getting a sibling soon?” Sadie grinned.

“Hopefully,” John blushed, “Anyway, what now?”

“We got closer to finding Isabeau!”

“Yes, but… What now?”

“I don’t know yet, okay. Let’s just… Celebrate that we got this far already!”

John playfully shook his head and walked closer to the water, yet still keeping his distance so he wouldn’t fall in. He pulled a cigarette out of his pocket and lit it up, taking a slow drag. Sadie soon joined him.

“So what did happen to the old brothel outside of town?”

“Heard the girls finally killed Madame Mozelle. Can’t say I blame them, though.”

“Me neither. Heard Dawson’s daughter almost worked for her because of money issues. She’s twelve, for God’s sake!”

Sadie and John overheard the conversation between the two men who were standing a small distance away from them.

“How convenient,” Sadie chuckled.

“Let me guess, you want to check it out?”

“Of course!”

Without much further ado, Sadie walked over to the two men and asked, “Gentlemen, do you know where we can find this brothel?”

Both men’s eyes widened. One of them nervously stammered, “U-Uh yeah. You uh, you head towards the stables a bit north from here, then follow the road and turn left.”

“Th-then you uh… You… You keep going until there’s another path left,” the other continued.

“You’ll notice when you see a dead body,” the first one blurted out, receiving a smack against his head from his friend.

“Thank you,” Sadie grinned.

“Before we leave,” John grabbed her arm to prevent her from walking away, “Mind if we grab something to eat first.”

Sadie rolled her eyes and chuckled, “Okay, fine, Marston!”

## ~ « • » ~

They left Van Horn around one pm, right after their meal. “Let’s find the stables first,” Sadie suggested. “If I recall correctly,” John muttered, “If we follow the road north we’ll find it in no time.”

He was right. Half an hour away of Van Horn they found the stables. “Almost there,” John muttered as they rode past. True enough, they followed the man’s directions perfectly and found the brothel – or what’s left of it, anyway.

“Is that…?“ Sadie began to ask.

John finished her sentence, “A skeleton? Yes.”

“I’m guessin’ that’s Madame Mozelle.”

“Should we… look inside?”

“Hmm,” Sadie hummed, “Yeah.”

The two dismounted their horse and took slow steps towards the house. The corpse had been here for a long time and they’d have died before the gang disbanded. Sadie moved to open the door, only to find it locked. She grumbled under her breath and swiftly kicked it open. A gasp came from inside the house and John pushed his way inside, narrowly avoiding a candlestick being thrown at his face.

“Woah!”

In the corner of the room sat a girl, around twenty years old. She was shaking like a leaf. Her dark brown hair looked like it hadn’t been washed in months, years even. Her skin was dirty and covered in green-ish splotches.

“Get away!” she yelled half-growling. “Calm down!” John said, raising his hands to show he was unarmed and didn’t intent on harming her.

It didn’t work, however, and the girl screeched, loudly. Instinctively, John screeched back but louder and it reminded him of how he was when Dutch found him.

Sadie pushed him aside, “Oh, stop it!”

She then turned to the girl and began to speak in a soft voice, “Hey, who are you?”

The girl stared at her, wide-eyed, before she softly said, “Casandra…”

“Casandra, did you… work here?”

A nod.

“Did your friends kill Madame Mozelle?”

Now she shook her head.

“Do you know who did?”

Another nod. “A woman came here… Her daughter used to work for Madame Mozelle,” Casandra quietly said, “She… She didn’t like it and tried to get her daughter back but Madame Mozelle refused…”

“So… The mother killed Madame Mozelle…?”

“Yes.”

“What happened to the other girls?”

“We were with three. Me, Sara and Jenny. The mother saved her daughter and Jenny ran away. She tried to take me with her but… I refused. I didn’t want Madame Mozelle to be angry…”

“Only three? What about… Has there ever been a girl named Isabeau here?”

Casandra nodded, pouting, “Madame Mozelle said her name was Isabel, but the girl said it was Isabeau. A man came here one day. He saw her and bought her, saying he was smitten. But he never returned her…”

“Do you know who this man was?” John asked but Casandra shook her head, “I-I don’t, but Madame Mozelle wrote it in her register…”

“Where is it?”

The girl pointed to a shelf behind John, her hand shaking as she did.

John immediately turned around and looked for the book. When he found it, he pulled it of the shelf and flipped through it. “The records stopped in 1898… We were in New Austin by then,” John noted, “Found her. Isabeau K.Z., sold to… Rocco Old Mills… on the twenty-second of April, 1895…”

“1895?” Sadie asked, “But if she was twenty in 1899…”

“She was sixteen when ‘Rocco Old Mills’ bought her.”

“Do you remember what the man looked like?” Sadie asked Casandra.

The girl nodded, “Y-Yes… He had grey hair… He was so, so thin and scary. He had such a mean grin on his face.”

“So a typical man who goes to a brothel?” John rolled his eyes and Sadie shushed him.

“What are you going to do…?” Sadie asked the girl.

“I-I have to stay here…”

“You don’t… You… You can go out there, live your life!”

John pulled out a small box that was next to the register and opened it. “This might help you get started.”

He pulled three hundred dollar bills out of the box and showed it to Sadie and Casandra.

Casandra gasped, “I-I can’t! It’s Madame Mozelle’s money!”

Sadie stepped closer to Casandra, kneeling in front of her, “Casandra, Madame Mozelle is dead, you’re free…”

Casandra still seemed uncertain. At least, until Sadie offered the girl her hand. Casandra carefully took Sadie’s hand and she led her outside. Casandra used her free hand to shield her eyes from the sun.

“John,” Sadie said, looking behind her, “How about we get this poor girl some clothes and somethin’ to eat while we try to find out more about Rocco?”

“Where are we gonna find clothes?”

“I dunno, we can go to Saint Denis?”

“That’s a bit far, don’t ya think?”

“It ain’t even two hours!” Sadie scolded and finally, John relented, “Fine. Let’s go.”

Sadie helped Casandra mount Hera while John mounted Rachel. Soon, they were off to Saint Denis.

## ~ « • » ~

Whenever John set foot in Saint Denis, he was instantly reminded as to why he barely went there anyway. He hated the city and preferred the dry land of New Austin over Saint Denis anytime. And if there was anything that annoyed him even more than Saint Denis, it was the people who lived there.

People stared at Casandra as he and Sadie rode through Saint Denis, on their way to the tailor. John, in turn, glared back ay anyone who stared.

They led Casandra to the tailor as she looked down at her feet, ashamed. John hoped it’d get better if her torn dress was switched for something better.

The tailor let out a gasp of surprise as they entered his shop. “Can you get her s’thin’ to wear?” John asked and the man glared, “Do you have enough money for that?”

“I do,” John growled and the man curtly nodded.

“Follow me,” he said, leading the three to the back of his shop, where the dresses were.

The man left and John looked at Casandra, “There, pick anything you like.”

“A-Are you sure?”

“Of course.”

She tried on various dresses before deciding on two dark blue dresses. John paid for it, as promised.

“Casandra, do you mind if John and I talk about Rocco while you eat s’thin’?” Sadie asked and Casandra shook her head, “Go ahead.”

The saloon was filled with people, as usual, but they still managed to grab a table. Sadie and John only ordered something to drink while letting Casandra eat.

“Rocco Old Mills,” Sadie murmured, “Sounds suspicious.”

John nodded and pulled out his journal. “Almost forgot the asshole’s name, better write it down.”

“Did he look like an outlaw?” Sadie asked. “He wore a hat like yours,” Casandra mentioned, her mouth stuffed with food.

“Any gangs that are known for treating women like objects?”

“Yeah, any gang that wasn’t ours.”

“Damn,” Sadie groaned.

“You think this name is fake?” John asked, already suspicious and Sadie nodded, “Of course. Doesn’t sound real anyway.”

“Great, now we have to find out his real name.”

“Do you remember what he wore that day?” Sadie asked Casandra. Casandra stayed quiet and swallowed her food. “Uhm… I… I remember green? And a uh… What’s it called… Waistcoat?”

John began to wonder if he knew anyone dressed like that but his mind blanked. Suddenly, Sadie grabbed his journal and pencil. “Hey, what’re you doin’?!” John scolded but Sadie didn’t reply.

When she was done, she showed him what he wrote.

R O C C O   O L D   M I L L S

C O L M   O’D R I S C O L L

John furrowed his eyebrows and took his journal back. “What’d’ya think?” Sadie asked.

“I think you’re right.”

“… Do you think Kieran might’ve known ‘er?” Sadie asked.

“We’ll have to ask him.”

“Well where is he?”

“Heard he’s working with some horses in Lemoyne, in a stable,” John said, “Mary-Beth told me when I saw her in Valentine.”

Sadie looked at her pocketwatch and said, “Looks like we’ll have to head out tomorrow, we’ll be too late if we go now.”

“You’re right. Maybe we can get a room here? I need to write a letter to Abigail anyway.”

“Sure. Casandra, is it okay if we share a room?” Sadie asked and Casandra nodded, eating the last food from her plate.

“You should write your letter so you can still send it,” Sadie chuckled, walking over to the bar to rent two rooms.

John looked through his satchel for some paper and then began to write.

_Dear Abigail and Jack,_

_As of writing this, I’m in Saint Denis. Sadie and I suspect Colm O’Driscoll had something to do with the missing princess. We’ll be going to some stables near Rhodes later, might visit Pearson’s store._

_I can’t wait until I’m back home. I miss you both._

_John_

“Good enough,” he murmured. “Who’s Abigail?” Casandra curiously asked and John couldn’t resist the grin from appearing on his face, “My wife.”

“Anyway, do you know what you’ll do? Do you have any family or friends you can go to?” John asked. Casandra frowned, “I-I don’t…”

“I’m sure you can find s’thin’! Best not in these parts of the country but maybe in New Hanover? Or West Elizabeth?” John suggested. “I… I think I know someone from Strawberry!” she smiled, “He-He owns a store there! He wanted to save me when Madame Mozelle was still alive but she banned him…”

“That’s great!” John grinned, “We can take you to the station tomorrow, get you on a train to Riggs Station and give you directions. Are you sure about this, though?”

Casandra smiled, “I-I am.”

## ~ « • » ~

After John sent his letter, he went back to the saloon. They ate dinner and then went to bed.

As promised, they gave Casandra directions to Strawberry the next day and John gave her the money they found in the brothel. They hoped she’d be alright.

“Ready to go find Kieran?” Sadie asked and John nodded.

“Let’s go.”

The roads of Lemoyne felt all too similar, in a way that othered John. If it weren’t for Abigail, Jack or Beecher’s Hope, he’d have left this part of the country long ago. At least, that’s what he tells himself. Yet he can’t resist visiting old campsites they used to have. He’d wipe out Shady Belle of Lemoyne Raiders just to walk around the place. Same with Beaver Hollow – which was easier since the Murfree Brood were so inbred, they ran out of a cave one by one, straight into John’s bullet.

John didn’t actually know the way to the stables. Only remembered it was somewhere near the border of New Hanover.

“What’s that?” Sadie asked as they rode past a shack that was guarded by alligators – except for the one caged under the house, since it was dead.

“Some creepy shack, probably belonged to some crazy fella. Has weird pictures of deer ‘n stuff too,” John muttered.

Sadie huffed and they kept on riding.

It was an hour after leaving Saint Denis and they finally arrived at the stables. It was fairly empty, except for a woman carrying hay to the stables.

“Do you see Kieran anywhere?” John asked and Sadie pursed her lips.

“No, let’s ask the lady,” she suggested. They rode up to the stables and got off their horses there. The woman they saw earlier walked up to them, brushing her bony hand through her greying hair. “Hello,” she smiled, “Here to look for horses? Or some food?”

“Actually,” Sadie said, “We’re looking for Kieran Duffy, we heard he works here?”

The lady’s warm expression quickly turned sour.

“Why do you need him?” she curtly said.

“We’re old friends,” John explained, “We uh… Wanted to surprise him.”

“Friends, you say?” the woman glared, “Not the friends who took his eye, I hope?”

“No,” Sadie breathed out, “Actual friends.”

The woman didn’t say anything before she suddenly turned around and walked back into the stables.

“Kieran,” she called out, “You have visitors!”

They saw a silhouette pop out of the stables and move towards them. When he walked out of the shadows, they saw a smiling Kieran. “John, Sadie!” he smiled, immediately engulfing the two in a hug.

They awkwardly hugged him back before he let go. “What brings you here?” he asked.

“Oh, we uh… We wanted to talk, and ask you something… Private,” John explained and the old lady huffed, “I’ll be in the house if you need me.”

As soon as she was out of hearing distance, Kieran looked at them, “How did you even know I worked here?”

“Mary-Beth told me when I saw her in Valentine,” John said. At the mention of Mary-Beth, Kieran blushed, “Uh, yeah, we… We talk sometimes. A-Anyway, what did you want to ask?”

“It… It’s an O’Driscoll thing,” Sadie said, no emotion on her face.

Kieran’s face fell as he looked away, “O-Oh…”

“It’s not directly related to you,” John tried to reassure him, “We just wanted to ask if you knew someone we’re looking for right now.”

“Al-Alright…” Kieran murmured.

“We’re looking for princess Isabeau. She was sold to a brothel and they named her Isabel,” Sadie said, “We think Colm O’Driscoll bought her from the brothel.”

“Isabel…?” Kieran asked.

John and Sadie felt hopeful, for once, as Sadie asked, “You know her?”

“I-I think so. I think Colm called her Bella, though…”

“What did she look like?”

“Uh, b-blonde hair a-and… uh… Grey eyes, I think?” Kieran stammered, “I-I don’t know, I only saw her a few times! Colm barely let her out of the house…”

“Do you know what happened to her?” Sadie rushed.

Kieran’s eye was wide as he tried to think, “U-Uh yeah, she… She freed me from the O’Driscoll camp and helped me get a horse. I-I don’t know where she went but she ran away too.”

“And no one else noticed?”

“N-No, they were all celebratin’ something…”

“Dead end,” John sighed.

“You don’t know anything else?” Sadie asked, frowning.

Kieran rubbed his jaw, deep in thought before he perked up, “I… There was someone. One of the O’Driscolls!”

“H-He left… I think? A-And I think he and Bella were close.”

“What’s his name?” Sadie pushed, “What happened to him?”

“I-I don’t know!” Kieran nervously stuttered, “I-I think he goes to Valentine every day, for work.”

Sadie groaned, “Of course. Valentine is another hour away.”

“Or,” John interrupted, “We can leave our horses here for a while, walk back to Rhodes and catch the train.”

“W-Wait,” Kieran said, “I-Is there anything else I can help with?”

Sadie and John looked at each other. After what they said to Kieran, did to him, he still wanted to help them.

“I mean,” John shrugged, “We don’t know what this man looks like,”

“Yeah, we don’t,” Sadie grinned, “Maybe someone could help us identify him?”

Kieran brightly smiled, “I’ll go ask Mrs. Donner, wait here, okay?”

Sadie and John couldn’t help but smile as he ran off. “So, Valentine,” John muttered.

“Soon we’ll be on the other side of the country if we don’t watch out,” Sadie joked.

“After the trip the princess has taken, I’d be surprised if we didn’t,” John joined in.

Kieran came back a few minutes later, a grin plastered on his face. They left Lemoyne around eight am. There was fog covering the grass and it was hard to see the road, but it felt like the road of Rhodes to Valentine was burned into their minds.

Another hour passed before they arrived in Valentine.

They hitched their horses near the post office and went on foot from there. “So, Kieran, any idea where he might be?” Sadie asked and Kieran looked around, scanning the crowd, “If he’s still the man I remember, probably in a saloon somewhere.”

John chuckled, “For all we know, we could’ve ran into him when we came here few days ago.”

Sadie snickered and said, “Let’s go find this fella.”

They made their way to the saloon near the general store and looked around.

“See him anywhere?” John asked. Kieran frowned and shook his head, “No… No, I don’t…”

“Alright,” Sadie said, “Let’s go to the other saloon then.”

After finding nothing in Smithfield’s saloon, they tried their luck in Keane’s saloon. As soon as they entered, Kieran blurted out, “Tom!”

A dark-haired stranger immediately popped up. “Kieran?”

‘Tom’ stood up and walked towards them, “What’re you doin’ ‘ere?”

“Looking for you, actually,” Kieran smiled, “These two are looking for Bella, thought you might’ve an idea.”

“Bella? Haven’t seen her in years,” Tom furrowed his eyebrows, “Found her in Van Horn one day, she disappeared soon after.”

“Tell us everything,” Sadie said.

Soon, they were sitting at a table together as Tom told his story. “Remember that one time Colm sent me out on a mission near Roanoke Ridge?” he asked and Kieran nodded. “After Anna disappeared, he asked me to go to the brothel and find him a girl for the night. So, I did. At least, at first. I saw how they were treated and wanted to help but they refused. The crazy woman who owned the brothel banned me, especially because I couldn’t return Isabel. Colm had taken a liking to her, after all.”

“Wait, you’re the one who helped Casandra?” John interrupted and Tom nodded, “Yes, why?”

“We helped her out, put her on the train to Strawberry,” Sadie explained. Tom’s eyes widened, “You… I… I am so grateful, if there’s anything I can do-“

“Just keep talkin’”

“Right,” Tom said, “Well… I talked to her about it. We had been planning our escape for months but one day… She refused. I didn’t know she managed to get away.”

“She saved me,” Kieran confessed, “They’d have killed me if it weren’t for her. She ran too, after that.”

“Damn,” the man breathed out.

Sadie leaned forward, her elbows resting on the table, “You said you saw her in Van Horn?”

“Yes, I heard loud noises in the saloon and thought something was wrong. I was right. Found her trying to bite some Pinkerton’s head off,” Tom huffed, “Turns out, she was just savin’ someone. Someone from Ireland, I think. I helped them get to the hotel but when I woke up the next day, they were both gone. Isabel only left a note saying ‘Thank you’.”

“Did you say ‘someone from Ireland’?” John repeated and Tom nodded.

“When did this happen?”

“I dunno, somewhere near the end of the year, I’d say.”

“We were in Beaver Hollow by then,” Sadie pointed out.

“Oh man, it was nice seeing you again, Kieran, but I gotta go, Casandra’s probably wonderin’ where I am,” Tom sighed, standing up and waving to the bartender.

When he left the saloon, Sadie, John and Kieran started talking again. “D’ya think what I’m thinking?” Sadie asked.

“Sean,” John and Kieran simultaneously said.

“Where is he now?” John asked and Kieran frowned, “Last I heard, he and Karen ran off together.”

“Is there any way we can reach them?” Sadie asked and Kieran nodded, “Mary-Beth gave me their aliases, in case I wanted to write ‘em a letter.”

“Good,” Sadie said, “How about we go to Beecher’s Hope? We can ask them to meet us there?”

“Beecher’s Hope?” Kieran confusedly asked and Sadie grinned, “John’s a farmer now.”

As expected, Kieran laughed.

“Alright,” he said, still smiling, “Let me write a letter and then go to your farm.”

“Ha ha,” John said, rolling his eyes. He crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair as Sadie gave Kieran paper to write.

They shared one last drink before going to the post office.

“So, where is Beecher’s Hope?” Kieran asked. “West Elizabeth, west of Blackwater,” Sadie said and Kieran snorted, “I heard the land there is terrible.”

“We’re survivin’!” John defended himself.

“How long are we gonna have to ride?” Kieran asked.

“Two hours, max,” Sadie answered.

And so, after Kieran sent the letter, they rode to Beecher’s Hope.

## ~ « • » ~

Abigail looked surprised when John and Sadie came back with Kieran instead of the princess, and John couldn’t blame her.

“John, you’re back!” she gasped, running towards them as they dismounted.

“Yeah, we uh… It seems that some of us knew the princess without actually knowing about her royal status,” John awkwardly explained as Abigail hugged him.

She then noticed Kieran.

“Oh, Kieran!” she breathed out, “It’s… Great seein’ you again!”

“Oh, honey,” John said, “We uh, we’ll be seein’ more familiar faces soon, hopefully.”

Abigail furrowed her eyebrows, “What d’ya mean?”

“We think Sean knew her, so he and Karen may be visiting soon.”

“You’re not bringin’ the gang back together, are you?” Abigail half-heartedly joked and John chuckled, “And give up this life? Wouldn’t dream of it.”

She then looked at the three, “I better make sure I have enough for lunch.”

“Don’t worry, Sean and Karen won’t be getting our letter ‘till noon. We don’t even know if they’ll come,” John reassured his wife.

“Still,” Abigail murmured. She turned to their two guests and smiled, “Please, come in.”

John watched as his wife led everyone inside and he sighed. Part of him was happy to see everyone again.

Jack felt indifferent. He was only four when the gang disbanded and barely remembered Kieran – except that he used to throw rocks at the poor man, of course.

Uncle was somewhat happy. He jokingly called Kieran an O’Driscoll but this time they both knew it was a joke.

And Rufus was just glad to get more pats.

The sun had begun to set and John was helping Kieran and Sadie set up tents on the ranch so they could stay. “Hey, look!” Kieran suddenly called out, pointing to the gates where two horses were riding.

“Son of a bitch…” John muttered under his breath, grinning.

The people riding the horses kept riding until they were right in front of the three and immediately got off.

“Sean, am I glad to see you,” John chuckled.

“Ha,” Sean laughed, “Knew ya missed me.”

“Karen,” John smiled, tipping his hat.

“So what do ya need me for? Kieran said it’s important,”

“You see… Were you ever… Harassed by Pinkertons?”

“Pretty sure we all were at one point,” Sean joked and Sadie sighed, “In Van Horn?”

Sean frowned, “No, never been to Van Horn before the gang went to shit.”

John furrowed his eyebrows, “But Tom said Isabel ran off with an Irishman…?”

“John, I ain’t the only Irishman in the country,” Sean pointed out and John rolled his eyes, “Well I’m sure not many Irishmen get harassed by Pinkertons.”

“Great, we’re looking for someone from Ireland and we don’t know where to find ‘em,” Sadie groaned, tiredly rubbing her forehead.

“Wait, did this Tom say an Irishman or just someone from Ireland?” Karen asked, linking her arm with Sean’s

“Someone from Ireland,” Kieran said.

“There’s only one other person from Ireland we know who would have information on the one person the Pinkertons are hunting down,” Sadie noted.

“Molly?” Karen guessed.

“But she was long gone before the gang disbanded,” Sean pointed out and Karen continued, “Yeah, we assumed she’d be dead before she even reached Van Horn, with those Murfree brothers hangin’ ‘round.”

“Wait so… Isabel ran off with Molly, then? Why?” John asked.

“I mean… Dutch didn’t treat Molly all too well, and Colm didn’t treat Bella well either,” Kieran shrugged and Sadie rolled her eyes, “Nice way to bond.”

“We have to find Molly,” John decided, “At this point I don’t even care about the price, I only want to know what the hell’s goin’ on.”

“How are we goin’ to find Molly, though?” Karen asked.

John stared at them. “You want to help?”

Sean pointed at John and grinned, “You pulled us all the way out here, so we ain’t leaving without actually doin’ something.”

“Fine, but you better help with the tents. We’ll… We’ll plan this all out tomorrow,” John said, “I’ll go tell Abigail the big news.”

He walked towards his house as the others began setting up tents. When he entered the house, he saw Abigail knitting in the chair.

“Hello,” he softly whispered. “Hey,” she smiled back.

“Sean and Karen arrived,” he told her, “They’re setting up tents right now.”

“Did you find out more?” Abigail asked, briefly pausing her movements and John took a deep breath.

“We think the princess ran off with Molly.”

“Molly?” Abigail gasped, putting her knitting work down on the table and standing up.

“Yeah,” John breathed out, “This is just gettin’ more confusing. Worst part is, is that we have no idea where Molly is.”

“I don’t think anyone knows, John,” Abigail sighed, “We all assumed she died. Dutch didn’t even think about her.”

“Yeah well, I want to know why the princess ran off with Molly at this point.”

“And you don’t know where she is.”

“No. Unless you know where she might be.”

“We’re talking about Molly here, she’d probably be in New Hanover, maybe Lemoyne or West Elizabeth – the north part, that is,” Abigail shrugged and John looked at her, confused.

“You sound so sure of that,” John glared.

Abigail rolled her eyes as she sat back down and began knitting again, “Well, Molly and I… We talked a few times. She said she liked the weather in Horseshoe Overlook and Clemens’ Point a lot, I’m guessing she’d prefer to stay there. Besides, the other parts are filled with dangerous gangs who’d kill her without second guessing.”

“You’re… You’re right,” John said, “Abigail, you’re absolutely brilliant,”

“Gee, thanks,” she said, playfully rolling her eyes.

John ran into their shared bedroom and pulled the map from the bedside table before taking it to Abigail. He laid it out on the table and looked. “So there are stations all over these parts…” he muttered. Abigail sighed and stopped knitting again before sitting down next to him.

“Well, Valentine’s too muddy, of course.”

“And Strawberry too…”

“But maybe there’s a farm nearby…”

“Maybe the clerks in the post offices can help?”

“Good idea, John,” Abigail smiled.

“At least I’ll know what to do tomorrow,” John sighed.

Abigail pecked his cheek and sighed, “It’s late…”

“You’re right, let’s go to bed…”

## ~ « • » ~

John woke up to loud noises the next morning. One look at his pocketwatch and he realised it was almost nine am. He shot up, alarmed and immediately got dressed.

When he walked into the living room, he saw everyone sitting together. Jack was sitting on the floor as everyone talked about what they’ve been up to.

“Ay, John!” Sean greeted.

“Hello everyone…” John tiredly waved.

“So, what are we doing today?” Karen asked.

“We’ll be visiting some post offices today,” John explained, “Figured we can split up, ask around. There are about four stations that can help.”

“Which ones?”

“There’s uh, Wallace station, Emerald station, Valentine and Riggs station,” John said, “Maybe Sean and Karen, you go to Wallace. Sadie, Valentine. Kieran, Riggs?”

They all murmured in agreement. “And then we’ll meet up here once we’re done?” Sadie asked and John nodded.

He pressed a kiss against Abigail’s cheek and ruffled Jack’s hair, much to his dismay, before they all left the ranch again. They rode together until Sean and Karen split up from the group to go to Wallace station. They rode past Riggs station where Kieran stayed. After an hour, Sadie split up to go to Valentine, and John was all alone on the road to Emerald station.

For once, the silence felt agonizing. He’d been so used to riding alone but riding with the gang felt… Natural. He supposed he’d always miss it.

He reached Emerald station faster than anticipated. His mind was on autopilot as he walked towards the clerk.

“Hello sir,” he cheerfully greeted John, “How may I help you today?”

“I was wonderin’ if you could help me find someone.”

“It… Depends.”

“Ever heard of Isabeau?” John asked. The clerk shook his head.

“Isabel?”

No.

“Bella?”

No.”

John groaned, “What about Molly O’Shea?”

“N-“ the clerk started before interrupting himself, “Molly O’Shea…”

He turned to look through a small journal, flipping through the pages.

“Yes, I know her.”

“Where is she?” John asked.

“I’m not allowed to tell you, don’t want lawmen after me,” the clerk glared and John rolled his eyes, banging his fist against the desk.

“Fine,” he grumbled, leaving the office and walking to his horse. He rode back to Beecher’s Hope, only stopping once in Valentine for food. It was a bit past three pm when he arrived and found everyone waiting for him on the front porch.

When they saw him coming, they all stood up.

“Did you find anything?” Sadie asked.

John nodded, climbing off his horse, “Think they’re somewhere in Emerald Ranch.”

“That’s great,” Kieran smiled and Karen nodded, “We can go there first thing in the mornin’!”

## ~ « • » ~

They left fairly early, just to make sure they’d be on time. Three hours after leaving Beecher’s Hope, John, Sadie, Kieran, Sean, and Karen arrived in Emerald Ranch. Then they had no clue where to go.

“We can ask the people here,” Kieran suggested. Which is exactly what they did.

After asking multiple people, they figured out they lived a fair distance away from the village. It took them a while but eventually they found a house on top of a hill with a small garden. Behind the house was a decently sized farmland.

Most importantly, on the front porch, they saw a familiar woman cleaning the wooden floorboards.

“Ah, get away, would you?” Molly grumbled as a ginger cat kept trying to play with her dress. The dress looked very different from what they remembered her wearing. Instead of a fancy dress she wore something Abigail would wear.

“Molly?” John asked. Startled, Molly turned around. Once she saw who her guests were, she let her broom fall and hit the ground.

“John?” she quietly replied, anxiously dodging everyone’s gaze, “How… How did you know I was here?”

“It’s uh, quite a story,” John said with an empty chuckle.

“Did Dutch-“ Molly started, fear in her eyes but Sadie interrupted, “The gang disbanded. We’re… Not on his side anymore.”

Molly stayed quiet.

“A story, you say?” she murmured and John nodded. She turned towards the house and opened the door, “Please, come in.”

The interior of the house looked like any house in New Hanover. Nothing fancy. Molly led them to the kitchen where there was a table with eight chairs. Food was cooking on the fire.

“First of all,” Sadie asked as they sat down, “Do you know someone by the name Isabeau?”

“Or Isabel, Bella…?” John continued.

Molly frowned, “Beau? I think she’s on the farm somewhere, I’ll go get her.”

“And you’ll come back?” Karen blurted out, regretting her words already.

“Yes,” Molly breathed out, “I don’t want to be on the run again. Besides, this is my home now.”

They stared at her as she left through the backdoor. They started talking about the house and Molly, but John didn’t. His eyes followed Molly as she walked over to a girl standing in the fields. Molly told her something, the girl nodded… The girl kissed Molly’s cheek before they both walked back to the house.

The door opened again and now everyone stared. First, Molly walked through the door. Then, a young woman with a dirty blonde braid. Her hair was a bit darker than Sadie’s.

She looked at everyone first, before nodding at Kieran. “Hey.”

“Hello,” he awkwardly replied.

She sighed, “I assume you’re… Molly’s old friends?”

Some of them nodded.

“And why are you looking for me?”

Silence filled the room, until John groaned, “Okay, first of all, what’s your name?”

“I’ve had many names. But now, it’s Beau,” she explained, “So, how did you find out about me?”

“Your missing person poster in Van Horn.”

Beau chuckled, “Quite a long trail to follow. You went through this much trouble for what, a hundred dollars?”

“To be honest,” Sadie muttered, “At this point we just want to know how you ended up here.”

Beau’s eyes briefly widened.

“Alright then. Do you want the whole story, then?”

“Go ahead.”

“Alright, I… I don’t remember much from my childhood, because I was five. I always remembered my name, though. I… I was sold to Madame Mozelle. I had to clean for, I don’t know, six, seven years? When I turned twelve I… Had to do different work. It was disgusting. But none of that matched up to Colm O’Driscoll.”

## ~ « • » ~

_I was sixteen. The sun was shining, birds were singing… I thought I’d be having a calm day until I heard the hooves of a horse… Two men, Tom and Colm paid extra to be allowed to take me out to another camp for my… Work. I… I can’t lie, I hoped they’d just kill me and leave me in the forest. I’d have preferred that over sex with Colm O’Driscoll anytime. When I first saw who bought me, I was disgusted. I was relieved when he was done, thinking he’d bring me back to Madame Mozelle._

_He didn’t._

_He locked me up in whatever house he could find, in case we were on the run. He had one of his men keep guard to make sure I wouldn’t run… One day, Tom ended up being my guard. He said he was sorry for taking me to Colm and promised to get me out of there. He almost did but… I had to stay. I wanted to leave on my own, to make sure he wouldn’t harm Tom for saving me._

_Then, one day, Kieran came back. I never really talked to him. But when I saw what they did to him, I had to intervene. When I was sure he’d make it out alive, I left too._

## ~ « • » ~

“And… You ended up in Van Horn?” Kieran asked.

“Not at first. I working in stores, farms, saloons at first for some money,” Beau explained, “I only got to Van Horn around November, maybe? Where they were harassing Molly.”

## ~ « • » ~

_I had only just entered Van Horn when I decided to visit the saloon first. I went and bought my drink and watched the saloon, to see what was happening. People were playing blackjack, some man fought someone from a freakshow… After an hour or so, a woman with red curly hair walked in. She seemed distraught but I let her be. She ordered drink after drink but I didn’t want to bother her._

_Only fifteen minutes later or so, two men came in, wearing stupid hats and stupid jackets. The made a beeline for the woman and started harassing her, asking questions about some guy named Dutch. She didn’t say anything, though, only spat in their faces. It wasn’t until one of them pulled out a knife I intervened._

_I told them to leave the poor woman alone when suddenly, Tom came in. A small fight may have broken out but Molly seemed to handle herself pretty well, even while drunk. The stupid men left, defeated._

_Tom brought us to a hotel, paid for a room for us and one for him._

_Molly and I… We started talking. About how Dutch had ignored her, treated her like shit after she threw away her life for him, how he never helped her get used to the outlaw life…_

_And I, I started talking about Colm. About how he got me, how he treated me… How he kept me captive._

_We then decided to leave together, and to stay together. It’s not as if either Dutch nor Colm would care about us anyway. After about a year of running, we bought a new house in Emerald Ranch. I helped her get used to this life and I do all the heavy work, like the farm._

## ~ « • » ~

“I bet Mary-Beth would’ve loved this,” Sadie joked.

Sean chuckled, “Anyway, you… You know you’re a princess, right?”

Beau hummed, “I suppose so. But I’m not. I… I’m used to living this life. I… I wouldn’t exchange it for anything in the world.”

“I understand,” John nodded, “I… I wouldn’t want to go back either.”

A small smile appeared on Beau’s face but disappeared just as quickly.

“It’s almost twelve o’clock,” she noted, “I suppose you’ll be staying for lunch?”

“You don’t have to-“ Sadie started but Molly interrupted, “Don’t worry, we have enough food to feed the entire settlement.”

“Alright, if you insist,” Sadie murmured.

Beau walked over to the food and said, “It’s almost done…”

“I-I’m sorry,” Molly blurted out, “For everything I said and…. That I didn’t do anything at camp.”

“We… We’re glad to see you’re doing better,” Karen muttered, “And to see that you’re getting a better treatment than Dutch gave you.”

“It must be great to have a good friend like Beau,” Sadie smiled and Molly nodded.

It seemed as if John was the only one who noticed her blush.

“It is,” Molly nodded.

They shared a few stories during lunch before they had to leave. Beau and Molly waved them off as they left. Kieran was the first to split off, to go back to the stables where he worked.

Then Karen and Sean split off too, to God knows where.

Sadie rode with John until he arrived at Beecher’s Hope. Abigail ran towards them as they arrived.

As soon as John jumped off his horse, Abigail hugged him. “Whoa, darlin’,” he chuckled, “You saw me this morning.”

“That’ll be my cue to leave,” Sadie chuckled, “See you soon, John.”

“See ya,” John replied before she rode off, leaving the ranch.

As soon as she disappeared between the hills, Abigail turned to John. “I-I have somethin’ to tell you, John.”

John looked at her, waiting for her to continue.

“I-I’m pregnant… I went to the doctor in Valentine this mornin’, as soon as you left,” she said, unable to resist her smile.

John’s eyes widened, “You-You’re pregnant?”

“I am.”

He immediately hugged her, lifting her up and twirling her around. She loudly laughed before John set her back down.

“Does… Does Jack know?”

“He does. He’s hoping for a little brother.”

John smiled and kissed her lips multiple times. “Abigail, you don’t know how happy you make me,” he grinned and she chuckled, “Oh, I’m sure I have an idea.”

They went back inside. Abigail continued to knit while John wrote in his journal, to complete the ending to this story.

Abigail stopped after a while and walked over to him. She kissed his cheek and said, “I’ll be going to bed, it’s late…”

“I’ll be there soon,” John promised.

“Oh,” Abigail said, “I… Do you know where Arthur’s grave is…?”

“I… I do,”

“Maybe… We can visit him tomorrow…?”

“That’d be great.”

**Author's Note:**

> Plz comment


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